On Ending a Story That Never Ends

November 30, 2019

Acts 28:29-31 (NIV)

For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!

CONSIDER THIS

And just like that, the book ends.

My favorite thing about the Acts of the Apostles is the way it ends without ending. There’s no closing summary or conclusion; no credit reel, no salutations or prayer requests. It’s like Luke couldn’t land the plane so he just jumped off.

At the same time it’s probably the most fitting ending in the history of endings, because it’s a story that never ends. I mean, how do you end a story that never ends? You don’t end it. You join it.

Think about it. Every story will one day come to an end but one. The story of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the story of salvation, the story of the Church, God’s own people, never ends.

This is what makes the gospel the gospel. By the sheer mercy of God we get to join the story that never ends. This is why, like Paul, we proclaim the Kingdom of God and teach about the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the only way into the never ending story, for Jew and Gentile alike.

The point of ending this way is to get us to turn the page and live the one life we have been given into the next chapter. This is our chance. Let us not waste our lives on any other story.

THE PRAYER

COME HOLY SPIRIT!

THE QUESTION

How is your Acts 29 story coming along?

NEXT ON THE DAILY TEXT: As the story of Acts ends, we find ourselves at the beginning of a new year in the Calendar of the Kingdom of God: Advent. I am pleased to welcome Casey Culbreth to the Daily Text to lead us through Advent. Casey is a worship leader, a pastor, a teacher and she brings all of this together in her gift of writing. She is the Worship Pastor at Grace Church in Fort Meyers, Florida. You will love her. Please invite your family, friends, and local churches to join us for this journey through Advent.

P.S. We’re running a sale in the Seedbed Store and the Daily Text series is 35% off. Be sure to check it out. (You may also want to grab a Come Holy Spirit mug—it’s a great reminder of our Acts prayer as we close out the series today.)